The best paczki in Detroit start in Hamtramck. That small city, wrapped almost entirely by Detroit, is home to the bakery that calls itself Paczki Headquarters, and it sits a few blocks from a Polish deli that has been feeding the neighborhood for decades. Add a historic Woodward Avenue donut shop, a Southwest Detroit neighborhood bakery, and a vegan-friendly spot on Livernois, and you have five very different ways to eat one of the richest pastries in the city.

A paczki is a Polish filled doughnut, and Detroit treats it like a holiday. This guide covers where to go, what to order, when the big day arrives, and how to avoid the lines, with links to each shop’s own page for current hours and ordering.

Good for: readers who want a practical Detroit paczki guide with five strong bakeries, neighborhood context, traditional and creative flavors, and official links for hours and ordering.

What Is a Paczki?

Start with the name. The plural is paczki, pronounced “POONCH-kee.” One of them is a paczek, which sounds like “PON-check,” according to The Takeout. The word is usually translated as “little packages.”

Paczki are deep-fried rounds of rich dough, traditionally filled with prune or rosehip jam and finished with powdered sugar or icing. They exist because of Lent. Families once used up the lard, eggs and sugar in the house before the fasting season began, so the dough is heavier and eggier than a typical American doughnut. Visit Detroit puts it simply: they were made to use up fats and sugar before Lent.

Is a paczki just a jelly doughnut? Not if you ask anyone in Hamtramck. The dough is richer and denser, the filling is generous, and the whole thing is meant to be a once-a-year indulgence. Purists told Metro Times that the real thing is far richer than an American jelly doughnut. Joan Bittner, a Paczki Day organizer in Hamtramck, added that American paczki tend to be bigger than the ones she saw in Warsaw.

Detroit’s connection is deep. According to Access Wayne, a Dodge Brothers automobile plant opened in Hamtramck in 1914 and drew crowds of Polish workers. The city’s population jumped from 3,589 in 1910 to 46,615 in 1920, and it incorporated in 1922, partly to avoid annexation by Detroit. The Takeout reports that about 90 percent of Hamtramck was Polish half a century ago, compared with roughly 7 percent today, and that the city is now considered Michigan’s most diverse. The pastry stayed even as the neighborhood changed.

Where Paczki Day itself came from is still debated. Bittner says it has existed in Hamtramck “forever” and grew out of local tradition. One reader quoted in the same Metro Times piece credits baking-industry staff at the Farmer Jack supermarket chain with promoting it to boost February sales. We cannot settle that argument here. What is certain is that Hamtramck owns the party.

When Is Paczki Day in Detroit?

In Detroit, Paczki Day is Fat Tuesday, also called Mardi Gras. It is the day before Ash Wednesday, when Lent begins. The date moves every year because it is counted back from Easter, as the Farmers’ Almanac explains.

This year’s Paczki Day was Tuesday, February 17, 2026. The next one is Tuesday, February 9, 2027, with Ash Wednesday on February 10 and Easter on March 28.

Poland does it differently. Paczki are traditionally eaten there on Fat Thursday, the Thursday before Ash Wednesday, which falls on February 4 in 2027. National Today lists that date. Plenty of Polish families enjoy them on either day, and many Detroit-area bakeries start selling several days early.

Some shops sell paczki only around the holiday. Others offer them year-round or well past Fat Tuesday. Check each bakery’s current availability before you drive.

What this means for you: the 2027 rush is still months away, but pre-order windows at popular bakeries can open weeks ahead. If you want a box from a Hamtramck favorite, plan on calling or visiting in January rather than waiting for the week of.

How We Selected These Places

This is an editorial selection, not a scientific ranking. There is no single “best” paczki in Detroit, and anyone who tells you otherwise is probably selling something.

We looked at local reputation, how central paczki are to each shop, the variety on offer, the shop’s connection to Detroit’s Polish food culture, how easy it is to get there, and how much practical visitor information is available. Official bakery websites were the preferred source for addresses and hours. Local news and food guides filled in the context. Ratings and review counts on sites like Yelp change constantly, so we did not lean on them.

The Top 5 at a Glance

Rank	Bakery	Location	Why it belongs	Best for
1	New Palace Bakery	Hamtramck	Detroit’s best-known paczki destination; family-owned since 1908; broad traditional and specialty selection	Traditional paczki, variety and the full Paczki Day experience
2	Srodek’s Campau Quality Sausage, Co.	Hamtramck (and Sterling Heights)	Long-running Polish deli and market with paczki alongside Polish foods; a strong local institution with an expanded bakery location	A full Polish-food stop plus paczki
3	Dutch Girl Donuts	Detroit (Woodward, plus a new East Grand Boulevard shop)	Historic Detroit donut shop with seasonal paczki offerings; opened a second location in October 2026	Classic donut-shop paczki and late-night availability
4	Donut Villa	Southwest Detroit	Neighborhood bakery with traditional paczki flavors and other baked goods	A simpler, local Southwest Detroit option
5	Good Cakes and Bakes	Detroit (Livernois)	Woman- and LGBTQ+-owned bakery with organic and vegan baked goods; known for creative paczki flavors	Vegan, organic and creative paczki options

Here is how the flavors and ordering compare.

Bakery	Neighborhood	Signature appeal	Typical paczki flavors	Ordering note
New Palace Bakery	Hamtramck	Historic Polish bakery; huge Paczki Day tradition	Raspberry, strawberry, blueberry, custard, lemon, apple, prune, specialty options	Pre-order strongly recommended for Paczki Day
Srodek’s	Hamtramck	Polish deli and market experience	Strawberry, custard, raspberry, plum, rosehip	Check current availability and seasonal offerings
Dutch Girl Donuts	Detroit	Classic Detroit donut shop; late-night access	Seasonal offerings; verify current menu	Check seasonal availability
Donut Villa	Southwest Detroit	Neighborhood bakery; traditional flavors	Raspberry, custard, lemon, apple	Walk-in friendly; verify Paczki Day availability
Good Cakes and Bakes	Detroit	Organic, vegan, creative bakery	Red velvet, lemon, strawberry	Check ordering process and availability

The takeaway: if you want tradition and a crowd, go to Hamtramck. If you want convenience or something different, the other three each fill a gap the big two do not.

1. New Palace Bakery, Hamtramck

New Palace Bakery is where most Detroiters picture themselves on Fat Tuesday. It has been family-owned since 1908 and calls itself “Paczki Headquarters,” according to AOL. The address is 9833 Joseph Campau Ave., Hamtramck, MI 48212, in the heart of the city’s main street. Visit Detroit describes it as an institution for more than 100 years.

The menu is the broadest of the five. In its 2026 Paczki Day listing, the bakery offered 12 traditional fillings and five specialty fillings, and two-in-one and three-in-one options for people who cannot choose, per Visit Detroit. Our research brief also notes seven traditional and specialty box sets in the 2026 listing. The typical lineup includes raspberry, strawberry, blueberry, custard, lemon, apple, and prune, plus a rotating specialty. In 2025 that was “cook-zki,” with cookie butter buttercream and cookie crumbs, according to Michigan Public. The 2026 special flavor was Cinnacream, per WXYZ.

Then there are the crowds. On Fat Tuesday 2026, Paczki Day hours began at 3 a.m. WXYZ reported that the first person in line showed up at 12:15 a.m., nearly three hours early, and that the line stretched down the block. The bakery sells by the box to speed things along. Susie Ognanovich, who is part of the bakery’s family, told WXYZ that loyal customers bring their grandchildren, and told Michigan Public that the bakery treats its customers like family and wants everyone to share in the tradition.

The shop has fans beyond Michigan. In 2018, Thrillist named it one of the 31 best donut shops in America, and the only Michigan entry on that list, per WXYZ.

Pre-order advice: this is where it counts. Michigan Public says customers typically pre-order a few days ahead, and that the bakery ships. One recent Metro Parent guide noted the bakery was not taking online orders at that time, so call or stop by to reserve. Call (313) 875-1334 or check the official New Palace Bakery site for boxes and holiday hours.

While you are on Joseph Campau, the Polish-food context is all around you, including Srodek’s, a few blocks away.

Good for: traditional paczki, variety, and the full Paczki Day experience.

2. Srodek’s Campau Quality Sausage, Co., Hamtramck and Sterling Heights

Srodek’s is the stop that turns a pastry run into a Polish-food run. The Hamtramck shop, at 9601 Joseph Campau St., Hamtramck, MI 48212, is a deli and market with smoked sausage, pierogi, stuffed cabbage, and other Polish foods, and paczki arrive alongside them.

The story starts with immigrants. Srodek traces its start to 1980, when Walter and Marianna Srodek opened the business after moving to Hamtramck. Other accounts differ a little. Edible WOW dates the shop to 1981 and describes a small smokehouse built in the late 1970s by the current managers’ grandparents. Either way, it is a third-generation family business, now run by Magdalena Srodek and her brother, Rodney. The product list is long: about 40 kinds of pierogi, hunter’s sausage, hams and bacon smoked with wood imported from Poland, golabki, nalesniki, potato pancakes, borscht and a wall of Polish imports.

Typical paczki flavors here include strawberry, custard, raspberry, plum, and rosehip. Treat that list as a guide, not a guarantee, and call ahead to check what is on the shelf.

There is also a newer second location. Srodek’s has a newer second location at its Polish plaza on Mound Road in Sterling Heights, which features Irena’s Pastry & Bistro. D Business described the planned project as about 16,000 square feet and roughly $5 million, with a bakery in its first phase. The result is an expanded European-style bakery operation outside the city. The brief lists the address as 40211 Mound Road, Sterling Heights, MI 48310, while D Business and Edible WOW give 40270 Mound Rd., so confirm the address on the official Srodek’s location page before you drive.

Hamtramck hours listed in our research are Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Call (313) 871-8080. The Sterling Heights shop lists Monday to Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed Sunday, and the number is (586) 250-9090.

Good for: a full Polish-food stop plus paczki.

3. Dutch Girl Donuts, Detroit

Dutch Girl is a Detroit donut shop first, and a paczki stop second, and that is the charm. It opened in 1947 at 19000 Woodward Ave., Detroit, MI 48203, just south of Seven Mile Road. Cecilia and John Timmer started it, according to Model D. Cecilia is the “Dutch girl” of the name, and the shop’s motto is “Made in sight by folks in white.”

The place has been through a lot. It closed in September 2021 because of staffing shortages and sat empty for more than a year, FOX 2 reported. It came back under new ownership, with owner Paddy Lynch buying the shop from the Timmer family and reopening it in 2024, per Hoodline. Fox 2 says the Woodward shop is open 24 hours, Tuesday through Sunday, and closed Mondays. That makes it one of the few places in the city where you can think about a paczki at 2 a.m. and actually act on it. Our guide to Detroit nightlife covers what else is open when the bars close.

The big news is the second shop. On October 6, 2026, Dutch Girl opened a new location at 2820 E. Grand Blvd., in the historic Howrani Studios building in Detroit’s North End, between Oakland Avenue and I-75. WXYZ reports the shop is open Tuesday through Saturday, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., selling donuts until they run out, with coffee until 1 p.m. The owner is Paddy Lynch, who also owns The Schvitz and the Dakota Inn Rathskeller.

One caveat. Paczki here are seasonal, and none of the coverage we read mentions them on the regular menu. The shop is known for its donuts, and it often joins regional paczki celebrations, so verify current availability. For questions about the East Grand shop, call the Woodward location at (313) 826-6005 or check the Dutch Girl Donuts site.

Good for: classic donut-shop paczki and late-night availability.

4. Donut Villa, Southwest Detroit

Donut Villa is the neighborhood option. It sits at 5875 W. Vernor Hwy., Detroit, MI 48209, in Southwest Detroit, and WXYZ’s Paczki Day 2026 guide lists it among the places to find paczki. It is a local bakery doing the classics.

The traditional flavors are raspberry, custard, lemon, and apple. The shop also sells other baked goods, so you can grab something else for the ride home.

Hours have been reported in different ways. One listing shows Monday to Friday 5 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday 5 a.m. to 3 p.m. Another shows pickup from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily and delivery from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Because the two disagree, call (313) 849-4752 or check Google Maps or Yelp before you go. The shop is walk-in friendly, but verify Paczki Day availability.

Good for: a simpler, local Southwest Detroit option.

5. Good Cakes and Bakes, Detroit

Good Cakes and Bakes is the creative pick and the one to know if you do not eat dairy or eggs. It is a woman- and LGBTQ+-owned bakery on Detroit’s Avenue of Fashion, at 19363 Livernois Ave., Detroit, MI 48221, specializing in organic and vegan baked goods.

Visit Detroit recommends red velvet, lemon, and strawberry. Metro Times lists strawberry, lemon raspberry, and a vegan red velvet, plus some non-vegan options, and names it as the place to find vegan paczki. The flavors do shift from year to year, so do not count on a specific one.

The ordering caveat: availability and the ordering process change, so check the official Good Cakes and Bakes site and its location page for current hours. Call (313) 468-9915 with questions. Vegan, gluten-free, and allergen details are worth confirming directly with the bakery.

Good for: vegan, organic, and creative paczki options.

Notable Mentions

Five is a short list. These shops and products also keep the tradition going.

Bozek’s Market (Hamtramck): (313) 369-0600. A Polish market that sells deli meats and pastries, per Visit Detroit. AOL reported that Bozek’s makes paczki from a family recipe from Poland and drives to Chicago for most of its imported ingredients.
Pietrzyk Pierogi: (313) 614-9393. Best known for pierogi, and based at Gratiot Central Market, 1429 Gratiot Ave., per Metro Times. It also makes paczki.
West Warren Baking Company: (313) 584-2746. A European bakery run by the Petkovski family, who emigrated from the former Yugoslavia more than 50 years ago, according to Visit Detroit.
Polish Village Cafe: (313) 875-5726. A restaurant for Polish comfort food, with the number taken from our research brief.
Polonia Restaurant: (313) 873-8432. A Hamtramck restaurant serving Polish sausage, stuffed cabbage, potato pancakes, and dill pickle soup, with Polish beer and music, per Visit Detroit’s Polish guide.
Detroit City Distillery’s Paczki Day Vodka: (313) 338-3760. A limited-edition vodka made by distilling raspberry paczki from New Palace Bakery, per WXYZ, in a 500-gallon copper pot still. In 2025, it cost $35, and the distillery also released a $25 Paczki Cream Liqueur, per Metro Times. It sells out fast.
Dutch Girl Donuts (East Grand Boulevard): send inquiries to the Woodward location at (313) 826-6005.

Phone numbers come from our research brief, so confirm them before you call.

Hours, Addresses and Phone Numbers

Hours change, so use this as a starting point.

Bakery	Address	Phone	Hours to verify	Official link
New Palace Bakery	9833 Joseph Campau Ave, Hamtramck, MI 48212	(313) 875-1334	Check the official site; Paczki Day hours differ	New Palace Bakery
Srodek’s (Hamtramck)	9601 Joseph Campau St., Hamtramck, MI 48212	(313) 871-8080	Mon to Fri 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sat 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sun 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.	Srodek’s Hamtramck page
Srodek’s (Sterling Heights)	40211 Mound Road, Sterling Heights, MI 48310 (confirm; some sources list 40270)	(586) 250-9090	Mon to Fri 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sat 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sun closed	Srodek’s
Dutch Girl Donuts (Woodward)	19000 Woodward Ave, Detroit, MI 48203	(313) 826-6005	Open 24 hours, closed Mondays; check the official site	Dutch Girl Donuts
Dutch Girl Donuts (East Grand)	Inside Howrani Studios, 2820 E. Grand Blvd, Detroit	Call the primary location	Tue to Sat 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.	Dutch Girl Donuts
Donut Villa	5875 W Vernor Hwy, Detroit, MI 48209	(313) 849-4752	Pickup 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily; delivery 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.; other listings differ	Use the Google Maps or Yelp listing
Good Cakes and Bakes	19363 Livernois Ave, Detroit, MI 48221	(313) 468-9915	Check the official site; hours vary	Good Cakes and Bakes

Two shops have two locations each, and that is the main thing this table clears up. Plan around whichever branch is closer.

Tips for Buying Paczki in Detroit

Order early. For New Palace especially, call or visit a few days ahead. Pre-order strongly on Paczki Day week.
Check hours. Paczki Day hours often differ from normal ones. New Palace opened at 3 a.m. in 2026.
Expect lines. On Fat Tuesday, people queue in the dark. Go early or order ahead and skip the line entirely if the shop allows it.
Confirm flavors and vegan options. Specialty flavors rotate. If you need vegan, call Good Cakes and Bakes first.
Bring cash if required. Ask when you call whether the shop takes cards.
Verify availability. Dutch Girl’s paczki are seasonal, and quantities at any shop can run out.
Budget for higher prices. Michigan Public reported that rising egg and chocolate prices made paczki costlier to produce, so some shops may charge more than you remember.
Try a mix. Two-in-one and three-in-one boxes let you sample.
Make a day of it. The Paczki Run, a 5K held the Saturday before Paczki Day in Hamtramck, per Access Wayne, is meant to help you make room.

If you are building a weekend around it, our things to do in Detroit guide and what Detroit is known for give the wider picture, and our write-up on Detroit-style pizza covers the savory side.

Official Links for Current Details

Use these when you need hours, menus, pre-orders or directions.

Bakeries: New Palace Bakery, Srodek’s, Srodek’s Hamtramck location and hours, Dutch Girl Donuts, Good Cakes and Bakes and its hours and location page.
Tourism and guides: Visit Detroit’s Paczki Day guide, Tour Detroit’s paczki guide, Detroitisit’s Paczki Day guide, Eater Detroit’s paczki map, and Michigan.org’s New Palace Bakery listing.
Reviews: Yelp’s paczki search for Detroit. Use it for a sense of volume and recent opinions, not as the final word on facts.

Frequently Asked Questions About the Best Paczki in Detroit

1. Where can I get the best paczki in Detroit?

New Palace Bakery in Hamtramck is the best-known choice and has been family-owned since 1908. Srodek’s, Dutch Girl Donuts, Donut Villa, and Good Cakes and Bakes round out our five, and each suits a different taste or situation. There is no single official winner.

2. What is the best paczki bakery in Hamtramck?

New Palace Bakery at 9833 Joseph Campau Ave. is the most famous, with a huge Paczki Day tradition. Srodek’s, a few blocks away at 9601 Joseph Campau St., is the better stop if you want Polish sausage and pierogi too.

3. When is Paczki Day in Detroit?

Paczki Day is Fat Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday. It was February 17 in 2026, and the next one is Tuesday, February 9, 2027. Many bakeries start selling paczki days earlier.

4. Where can I buy paczki in Detroit?

You can buy them at Hamtramck bakeries like New Palace and Srodek’s, at Detroit shops like Dutch Girl Donuts, Donut Villa and Good Cakes and Bakes, and at places like Bozek’s Market, Pietrzyk Pierogi and West Warren Baking Company. Always check availability first.

5. What are the best paczki flavors in Detroit?

Classics include raspberry, custard, strawberry, lemon, apple, and prune. New Palace adds rotating specialty flavors, such as Cinnacream in 2026. Good Cakes and Bakes is known for red velvet, lemon, and strawberry. Flavors change by year, so confirm with the shop.

6. Do I need to pre-order paczki in Detroit?

For Paczki Day at New Palace Bakery, yes, pre-ordering is strongly recommended, and some people still queue before dawn. Smaller shops like Donut Villa are walk-in friendly, but call to confirm what is available.

7. Where can I get vegan paczki in Detroit?

Good Cakes and Bakes on Livernois Avenue specializes in organic and vegan baked goods and has offered vegan red velvet paczki. Ask the bakery directly about allergens and gluten-free options.

8. What is the difference between a paczki and a donut?

A paczki is made with a richer, denser, eggier dough and is usually filled, then finished with sugar or icing. It comes from a Lenten tradition of using up fat, eggs, and sugar, and it is bigger and heavier than a typical American doughnut.

9. How do you pronounce paczki?

It sounds like “POONCH-kee.” The singular, paczek, is closer to “PON-check.”

10. What time does New Palace Bakery open on Paczki Day?

In 2026, it opened at 3 a.m., and the first customer arrived about three hours early. Hours differ on the holiday, so check the bakery’s official page before you go.

11. Is Dutch Girl Donuts open 24 hours?

The original Woodward Avenue shop at 19000 Woodward Ave. has been reported as open 24 hours Tuesday through Sunday, closed Mondays. The new East Grand Boulevard shop is open Tuesday to Saturday, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.

12. Is it Paczki Day on Fat Tuesday or Fat Thursday?

In Detroit, it is Fat Tuesday. In Poland, paczki are mostly eaten on Fat Thursday, the Thursday before Ash Wednesday. Many Polish and Polish American families enjoy them on either day.

Final Thoughts

Detroit’s paczki culture comes from Polish heritage and neighborhood bakeries, and it survives because people keep showing up, sometimes at 3 a.m. Start with New Palace if you want the full tradition. Add Srodek’s for the deli run, Dutch Girl for a late-night fix, Donut Villa for a quiet local box, and Good Cakes and Bakes for something vegan.

Try more than one style. Then use the official links above for current hours and ordering before you head out.

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